


When it was too much but you were enough

by AplusIsRoman (orphan_account)



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Drug Use, Fae AU, Keith no, M/M, RIP, anyway, background hunay, based on an old fic idea i had for a different fandom, cervitaur lance, don't trust the fae keith, drug mention, dunno if allura and coran coran the gorgeous man are gonna be here, fae matt, fae pidge, guess which one, i hope so, i know nothing about drugs ok roll with it, keith finds a pocket dimension, klance, might weasel shatt in there later who knows, the holts love candy but they still want your soul, there are three shiros, will update the tags as it goes on bc i have no idea what i'm doing, yes you will, you'll never guess
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-24
Updated: 2017-11-25
Packaged: 2019-02-06 09:59:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,493
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12815088
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/AplusIsRoman
Summary: Keith just wants a break, but finds much more. He's probably going to die.~~~Takashi Shirogane just wants Keith to have a home.~~~The Holts haven't seen a human in years.~~~Lance's life is in constant danger.~~~Hunk's new friend is a little strange.





	1. Chapter 1

Keith liked the quiet. In a house with ten other people, quiet was rare. Then there was the fact that neighborhood kids visited often, and, well, his new house was generally quite a party. His noise-cancelling headphones could only do so much. That was why tonight he was determined to get away.

He sprinted past Rolo and Nyma, who were finishing homework by shouting the answers to each other. He dashed down the stairs and Lotor gave him a weird look – honestly, what was that guy’s problem – but went back to his pretty violent game of monopoly. It looked like Zethrid, Ezor, Acxa and Narti were all collectively wrecking him. The thought made Keith grin a little. 

The triplets were in the living room, which was just fantastic, as they were probably the only ones who would stop him. 

Sven was tuning his guitar, but paused and looked up at the sound of footsteps. (It was amazing he could make it out, actually, considering the screams from upstairs.) 

“Where you are going?” He asked in that funny accent of his. Neither Ryou nor Takashi had it, so Keith had no idea where it came from. It was probably just to impress girls or something.

“Out,” he responded simply.

Ryou looked up from where he was reading a book. “Where? With who?”

“Nobody and why do you care?” Keith shot back. He’d never liked Ryou. He was nothing like Takashi – his preferred “Shiro”. He didn’t really have anything against Sven though, he was just weird.

“Takashi is at work. Are you going to see him?” Sven asked, resuming his awkward plucking of strings. Keith had never actually heard him play, and didn’t know if he could.

“Sure.” Keith pulled on his boots and slipped into his jacket. Ryou rolled his eyes and went back to his book.

“I can drive you.” Keith could barely hear Sven’s offer over a sudden crashing sound from above. It would seem Lotor was a sore loser. 

“I’m fine,” Keith insisted. 

“It’s getting dark. You shouldn’t be out there by yourself. Let him drive you.” Ryou didn’t so much as glance away from the book. 

“I’m not six, I’ll be fine.” Keith smirked under his breath as both Shiroganes flinched. It was a running joke that the triplets had been born on leap day. He took their hesitance as an opportunity to weasel through the front door.

The lingering winter chill in the air hit him like a hammer. He breathed it in, savoring the dullness of the noise inside. He actually couldn’t tell who was shouting this time!

The street was quiet. Everyone’s outdoor lights had been turned on prematurely, as the sun had only just begun to set. Keith strolled past the identical houses with their identical lawns, absorbing every ounce of silence like a dying man. He’d only been living in this house for a month now, but already it was getting to him. The itch was back.

Keith shook that thought out of his head. He made Shiro a promise – Takashi, his Shiro, not the other two. If they weren’t identical, he wouldn’t have known they were even related. He stewed on this a bit more before he realized he’d reached the end of the road.

Here there was a lopsided cul-de-sac, and past it was nothing. A few scraggly trees, but not enough to constitute true woodland. It was just a parking lot that hadn’t been made yet, really. A few small, beady eyes glinted from atop the trees at him. Keith stuck out his tongue at the squirrels, daring them to do anything about the trespasser. They chittered back and forth a bit and chose not to retaliate.

Keith watched everything as he wandered down a path of his own creation. The sky got dark, and wind pushed clouds around until the moon peeked through the treetops. It illuminated his way, and he gave it a thoughtful nod of recognition. 

As he walked, he saw something metallic shining only a little way off. He diverted from his original moon-chase and made his way over to it, crushing some shrubbery in the process. As Keith got closer, he recognized it as a knife stuck into the trunk of a large apple tree. There was some sort of emblem on the handle that Keith found he recognized, although he didn’t know from where. He reached out to grab it, and gasped when he found it searing hot. Keith yanked his hand away and blinked.

Light shone through the branches of the… elder tree. The ground was severely lacking in bushes and covered in leaves from the trees, which went on for what looked like miles. Keith stumbled back against the tree, looking at everything with wide eyes. He was not here a second ago. The sun was out. He was in a forest. It wasn’t even the right season. How did he get here?

Shakily, Keith stepped forward as if expecting the earth to give way underneath him. He turned a slow circle, seeing absolutely nothing that he recognized. Everything was completely silent. There were no squirrels in the trees, or foxes slinking away out of the corner of his eye. No bugs crawled about or buzzed in his face. There was nothing. All was quiet, and all was still. Except Keith.

He hadn’t even realized he’d begun running until the elder tree was out of sight. Everything in his body told him something was wrong. He wasn’t supposed to be here. The atoms in his body demanded he run, and Keith was only too happy to obey for once. 

The air was too crisp, too sweet. It was like a barely-ripened fruit, not at all the smog filled air of home. The leaves crunched too quietly, the earth too soft on his feet. The biggest thing, of course, was the silence. It was unnatural. Keith briefly wondered if he’d gone deaf, but shook it off. He could still hear his own heart banging drums inside his head. 

And then the silence was replaced. Keith came to a sudden halt, tripping over himself in his haste. His ears strained to pick up the soft sound of water. Then, slower now, he walked towards it. He didn’t know what the hell was going on, but he’d be damned if he didn’t try his hardest to find out. 

He reached a small pool of water. It sprouted from a rock and then dripped casually into a too-perfect stone circle before overflowing at the opposite end of the pool and becoming a tiny stream. Keith realized how tired he was at the sight of it chugging its way through the trees, off into the horizon. He flopped down, leaning his back against the boulder, and stared up at the treetops. The feeling of wrongness was still there, but it had dimmed considerably now that… it wasn’t as quiet. The pitter-patter of waterdrops were lyrical, soothing his nerves. The singsong tones drug him closer to sleep and, despite Keith’s best intentions, he fell asleep.

\---

His eyelids really, really did not want to cooperate with him when he woke up. The light was too gentle to glare him into wakefulness, but he really wished it hadn’t been. With considerable effort, he rubbed his face with the palms of his hands. He heard a soft gasp and opened his eyes.

Two identical faces looked back at him. It was NOT Ryou and Sven, thank goodness. These two were blonde, and the one looked a few years younger than the other. Her hair was braided and reached her ankles. The older one, a boy, had an unrecognizable hairstyle beyond the shaggy unkemptness of it all. They both stared at Keith in curiosity, without a trace of fear in their eyes. 

“Uh, who are you?” Keith bit the inside of his cheek, wondering if he could trust them. “Do you know where I am?”

The pair blinked in unison, which was admittedly creepy. The girl smiled and held out a hand to help him up.

“You can call me Pidge,” she chirped. Keith forwent her offering and stood unassisted. 

“This is my brother.” Pidge gestured to the boy, as if she could be speaking about anyone else. 

“What’s your name?” The brother asked. Keith was thrown off-guard by the hunger that appeared in their eyes as soon as the simple question left his lips. Keith immediately decided that whoever these people were, they were not to be trusted. 

“…They call me Red.” A kindergarten nickname, but it would work. The predator seemed to leach out of them all at once, and suddenly these people were human again.

“Neat!” Pidge’s brother responded. “Some people call me Chip.” 

Keith nodded. “Well, uh… I guess I better get going.” He took a step in the direction away from the stream. 

“Where are you going?” Pidge asked. 

Keith shrugged. If he could even find a way home, he sure didn’t want these two to find out where it was.

“You’re lost.” Chip said it as a statement, not a question. “You can’t get home on your own.”

“You underestimate me.” Keith walked a little faster, trying to throw them off. He noticed with a start that he was the only one who made noise on the oh-so-soft leaves as he walked. If not for their voices, Pidge and Chip would be as silent as everything else. 

“Need to get back,” he muttered under his breath. 

“You really do,” Pidge replied. Keith cursed himself for speaking aloud. 

“We can help,” Chip skipped ahead a bit. His strange dark robes fluttered about in a nonexistent breeze. 

“No thanks,” Keith moved around him. 

“We know how to get you home,” Pidge strolled leisurely beside him, the pale green skirt of her dress whipping around her legs as if a storm was coming. The air remained still. 

“I’ll make do.” Keith was nothing if not stubborn. The siblings frowned. 

“You’re not supposed to be here, and you know it.” Pidge’s voice went from chatty to accusing in a moment. 

“You don’t want to be here,” Chip spoke knowingly. “Let us help you.”

“And what do you get out of it?” Keith regretted it as soon as he said it. The hunger from before returned, as if they were starving for something only he could give them. 

“What will you give us, Red?” Chip’s tone was a threatening mix of suggestive and faux casual. It made Keith want to be anywhere but here. 

“What do you have, Red?” Pidge asked when Keith didn’t respond.

Keith didn’t have any money on him, but like hell was he going to tell them that. He reached into his jacket pocket, feeling around for anything. He pulled out an old candy bar he’d been saving, and to his utter shock their eyes widened with glee.

“I… I have this.” This was honestly not what he was expecting. He kind of thought they had wanted his soul, or something. 

“Candy!” Pidge and Chip squealed – again, in perfect unison. Pidge reached out to grab it from him, but he yanked it away.

“Help me find the way out, first. Then I’ll give you this and we’ll all be on our merry way.” The pair looked sulky for a moment, but then perked back up. Keith could not handle these wild mood swings. 

“This way!” Pidge skipped off in a different direction, and Chip followed, excitedly gesturing for him to come along. Keith did so, albeit reluctantly. 

Whatever these two were, it wasn’t human. Keith could see perfectly now how their bare feet glided just a bit over the ground, disturbing not a single piece of dust. He had to run to keep up with them. Their very bodies seemed to be made of air, moving without any resistance against them. As they guided him, they made strange bird-like chirping noises to each other, laughing at different intervals. Keith assumed they were talking. 

By the time they stopped, Keith was out of breath. Pidge and Chip’s skin was glowing now, and their ears had become pointy like some rip-off elves. The trees seemed to bend towards them, as if absorbing their light. They smiled at him as he caught up, not making a move to assist him. 

They were back at the elder tree. Or was it a different tree? Keith couldn’t tell. They kind of looked all the same to him. 

“Here you go, Red.” Pidge gestured to the tree as if expecting him to know what to do. When his lack of movement made it clear otherwise, Chip laughed and pressed his hand against the trunk. When he took his hand away, a symbol glowed where his palm had been. Keith recognized it as the same symbol on the knife. He moved to touch it, and Chip stepped in front of him.

His expression had returned to its predatory state. “We made a deal,” he said simply, holding out his hand.

Wordlessly, Keith gave him the stupid candy bar and moved past him. He ignored the sounds of delight behind him and pushed the symbol into the tree. For a moment, he felt as if he was drowning. Everything seemed wet and cold and he couldn’t breathe. He thought that he’d been tricked. All for a candy bar. Then he pulled his hand away and blinked.

The sky was turning all sorts of shades of pink and orange. He stood in front of the apple tree, but the knife was gone. Keith reached into his pocket to make sure it wasn’t a dream. No candy bars. He sighed in relief, breathing in the smog-filled air and listening to the soft bustle of background noise. The squirrels glared at him from above, and he waved cheerfully. Then he started walking. He couldn’t wait to get home.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> someone help me this fic is a trainwreck g o d i swear the rolo thing just, HAPPENED? and idk i got narti feels mk. i'm so tired

He didn’t have a watch on him, but he could tell it was morning. Judging from the colors of the clouds, it was also ridiculously early. If Keith was lucky, everyone would be in bed still. Keith wasn’t a very lucky person just then.

The back door creaked slightly as it opened, making him wince. He squished past, slipping off his boots and jacket. He tiptoed into the living room, hoping to get up the stairs and back to his room before anyone noticed. Then the figure on the couch moved.

“Shiro!” Keith jumped a little. It took a moment, but he eventually saw that it was Takashi. Oh no.

“Welcome back, Keith.” His voice lacked its usual warmth, instead replaced by disappointment. Keith could feel himself shriveling up a little inside.

Keith stiffened as Shiro stood, making his way over and wrapping his arms around him. Keith melted a little into the embrace. He’d never known his father, but he figured Shiro was probably a good replacement. Not that he’d know either way.

“I’m glad you’re safe.” Shiro murmured. “You should get some sleep.”

He let go of Keith, who nodded. As he stepped onto the stairs, Keith hesitated.

“I didn’t run away. I swear, I got lost.” Shiro seemed to contemplate this for a moment before lying back down on the couch. Keith couldn’t tell if he believed him or not.

Keith dragged his feet back into his room, ignoring Lotor, who was asleep on the floor. He didn’t even want to know what happened. He climbed onto the bunk above Rolo’s and laid down in an attempt to sleep. Sadly, he soon found that sleep was going to be impossible. He was still too shaken up by recent events to possibly rest.

Had it been a dream, or a hallucination? Had someone drugged him? Keith eyed Lotor’s unconscious form with suspicion. It was equally likely to have been one of the girls, or even Ryou if he was feeling particularly spiteful. The only other option was that what he’d experienced had been real.

And if it was, what did that mean? What WERE Pidge and Chip? What did the symbol on the knife mean? If he wanted to get answers, then he’d have to do some serious research. He’d have to go back. 

And how, exactly, would he do that? Last he checked, the knife was gone. He didn’t even really know how he’d gotten there in the first place. Would he have to make another deal to get out of there again once he was back? Would he be able to? These were all thoughts for tomorrow. He should try to get some sleep before school started.

Sleep wouldn’t come. His head was too loud.

\---

The alarm went off too soon. 6 AM roused the entire household. The triplets ran around the house, helping everyone get ready for the day ahead. Takashi had a line of bagged lunches by the door and as people left, they grabbed one. Sven helped Narti – who was blind and mute – gather her things and drove her to school. Rolo and Nyma had left early to meet up with friends at Dunkin’ Donuts, and Ryou had driven them since neither bothered to get their license despite being fully capable. (Keith was convinced they just wanted Ryou along to help pay for their drinks.)

Ezor and Acxa were busy helping each other with their makeup in the only bathroom with a shower, so Keith assumed he wouldn’t be able to shower before noon and left them to it. Zethrid and Lotor both shoved past Keith in an effort to get first dibs on breakfast, which was always a battlefield. Keith just sighed and grabbed a bagel with his lunch bag and headed outside to the bus stop.

The ride was slow and boring. Keith put on his headphones and pointedly ignored anyone who tried to talk to him. He had only been in school for a week and a half, but he knew the drill. He’d moved schools too many times for this to phase him. Trees flashed past him as he tried to remember every detail of what happened the night prior. 

First period was a nightmare. He could barely keep himself upright, much less as attentive as was recommended. Jeez, what class was this again? English? Who knew. He doodled in the margins of his textbook, wondering if aliens had anything to do with his experience. He concluded that it was entirely possible and not at all improbable, but in much simpler words. 

Second period didn’t happen. At least, it felt that way. Keith just sort of went zombie mode and autopiloted himself from one classroom to the other, and before he knew it, it was lunchtime.

Keith meandered amongst the mob, eventually making his way to a solitary table in the corner. He opened his lunch bag and ate his sandwich, tuning out the gossip around him. Someone sat down across from him, and he looked up.

The guy looked around his age, maybe a year younger at most. “Hey! Your name’s Keith Kogane, right? I’m Hunk Garett, I’m in your study hall next period.”

“Oh, hi.” He focused on his food, downing some of the water Shiro had packed for him. Keith wasn’t the best at socializing.

Hunk waited a moment, then continued. “So, uh, you're new, have you thought about joining any clubs?”

Keith glanced up to see Hunk casually digging into a Tupperware-protected gourmet meal that Gordon Ramsey would be proud of. “Nah. I’ve never been the extra-curricular type. Plus, I don’t do people-ing well.”

Hunk laughed at that. “Well if you want, I’m part of the astronomy club afterschool tomorrow. We meet in the science lab. Technically we’re part of science club since we only officially have two members, but you know…”

“How many people do you need to have a full club?” Keith asked.

“Three,” Hunk admitted sheepishly. “But that’s not why I came over, I swear!”

Keith chuckled a little. “That’s okay. I might drop by if nothing comes up.”

Hunk’s expression brightened. “Sweet! Even if astronomy’s not your thing, science club is pretty much for everyone.”

Keith nodded along. “Who’s the other person in astronomy club?”

“Oh! That’s my friend Shay. She’s super nice! We’ve known each other since middle school. She gets along with everyone, she’s pretty awesome.” Hunk beamed, then looked panicked. “Not that you’re not awesome! I just – you know – “

Keith laughed. “No, I get it.”

The two continued talking until lunch ended, walking with each other to study hall in the media center. Hunk was a really cool guy, Keith figured out. He had a little Shiba named Goldie and a seven-year-old sister named Laura who played the flute. Hunk cooked almost all of the meals at his house simply because it was his passion, which Keith supported wholeheartedly. 

Study hall ended too soon. Keith gave Hunk his email – Keith didn’t have a phone – and headed to third period. By the time fourth period ended the strange world he’d visited, along with Pidge and Chip, were the furthest things in his mind. 

Upon his return home, though, the sight of the scraggly trees was quick to jog his memory. He did a speed run of his homework – or well, half of it – and was just putting on his boots when Shiro (Sven, he noted) announced that they were going out for ice cream. Keith groaned as the others cheered. With such a large household to run, the Shiroganes rarely had “family” events such as this. One of the others must’ve aced a test or something. 

He huffed his way through it, which was difficult given that he genuinely liked ice cream. Their entourage took up the entire Ben and Jerry’s, but the employees didn’t seem to mind. A few of them even seemed to know some of Keith’s new housemates. 

Takashi sidled up next to Keith in his empty booth where he was stabbing his ice cream with a spoon, waiting for everyone to hurry up and return home.

“So, how was your day?” Shiro asked, taking a bite of his own strawberry swirl.

“It was alright. I met this nice guy, Hunk. I might join the astronomy club.” Shiro smiled at that.

“You’re making friends, that’s great!”

Keith rolled his eyes. “I mean I doubt he’s a serial killer or anything but let’s not jump to conclusions. I just think he makes a decent first impression is all. Jury’s still out on this whole ‘friendship’ disease.”

Sven laughed at that comment from a table over. Takashi playfully pulled Sven’s jacket hood over his eyes in retaliation.

Keith shook his head, hiding his tiny smile. 

“Brothers, right?” Takashi resumed his conversation with Keith.

“I wouldn’t know,” Keith replied dryly. Shiro ignored his comment. 

It took twenty minutes to rally everyone back together and squish back into the Shiroganes’ three vehicles. Keith ended up shoved between Zethrid and Rolo, which only served to make him extremely uncomfortable. He watched the sky get darker outside until they pulled into the driveway. Then he bolted out of the car, hollering to any Shiro that was listening that he’d be back, and sprinted towards the cul-de-sac at the end of the road. 

The air was slightly warmer than the night before, but Keith didn’t notice. He ran circles around nothing, searching for the apple tree. Once he found it, he stopped to let his lungs catch up with himself. Then he scoured every inch of the ground and the tree itself, frantically looking out for a glint in the moonlight. There was no sign of the knife. Keith pressed his hand against the tree, but nothing happened. He continued his search. 

Hours later, he was exhausted and still knife-less. He resigned himself and headed back, making up his mind to come back the next day… after astronomy club. 

The Shiroganes were waiting for him in the living room. Ryou didn’t look up from his computer, but Sven gave him a nod of acknowledgement. Takashi gave him a relieved smile from his corner of the sofa, but didn’t make a move to speak with him.

Upstairs, Ezor was building a fort out of miscellaneous items with Nyma and Zethrid. Acxa was quizzing Lotor on… something, and Narti was eating a bag of saltines on Lotor’s bed. Rolo was… Where was Rolo? Keith did a quick sweep of the house, but he was nowhere to be found. It set him on edge. 

“Hey, Nyma.” Keith interrupted the fort-building, stepping carefully over Ezor’s lithe frame. “I thought you and Rolo were practically attached at the hip. Where is he?”

Nyma shrugged, clearly irritated. “Why should I know? I don’t have him microchipped.”

She resumed her previous task. He wouldn’t be getting any new information out of her, it seemed. Keith was loath to ask Lotor, so he wandered back downstairs and asked the triplets if they knew.

“I think he went outside,” Takashi responded. “Why?”

“No reason,” he answered, trying to hide his fury that apparently Rolo could act like a normal teenager whereas Keith practically had to wear a kiddy leash everywhere. Too dark to go outside his boot. 

There was only one person left to ask. Keith wandered back up to his room, where Narti was finishing her snack. Conversations with her made him feel uncomfortable, mostly because he couldn’t tell what she was feeling. Her face was always painfully void of expression.

“Hey Narti,” He greeted her. She raised a hand in salutations.

“Do you know where Rolo is? I can’t find him anywhere.” Keith waited patiently as she pulled out her personal typewriter and tapped out a response.

‘He told me he went to hang out with his girlfriend,’ it read.

“I didn’t know he had a girlfriend,” Keith muttered. Narti’s fingers moved across the letters. 

‘He doesn’t. He’s going out to his drug dealer. He thinks I don’t know.’ Narti bit her lip. 

Keith was surprised. “Does Shiro know?” He didn’t care which Shiro she thought he was talking about, someone needed to get Rolo some help.

‘No,’ Narti wrote. 

“But you know. Why tell me and not them?”

‘You’re the only one who asked. Nobody asks me things, but they tell me things and expect me not to share them.’ Keith looked at Narti a bit closer now, and noticed the way her eyebrows were slightly scrunched together in distress. Narti was already excluded from so much, why didn’t anyone listen to her more? Keith swore to himself that he’d try his darndest to not be like the rest. 

“Do you wanna come with me to tell the triplets?” Narti shook her head.

‘I don’t want Rolo to know I snitched.’ She explained.

Keith sighed. “Alright. Should I tell them I figured it out on my own?”

‘Please,’ she begged.

Keith walked back out into the hallway, maneuvering past the ramshackle fort-hut-thing. Somehow, he’d make it up to Narti. She didn’t deserve to be ignored any more than any other person.


End file.
